News tagged ‘A6’

Citing sources in Japan, Australia's SmartHouse reported that the new Apple television will arrive at the end of 2012 in three screen sizes. It did not indicate exactly what screen size the third model would feature, falling somewhere between the low end with 32 inches and maximum size of 55 inches.

The source that is claimed to be a "major Japanese company" confirms that the Apple television will feature Siri integration, allowing users to control the TV set with their voice. Smarthouse claims that the television will be powered by a new processor (presumably the A6) set to debut in Apple's third-generation iPad, which the publication said will arrive "midway through 2012."

Sources at a major Japanese company who are involved in manufacturing the TV believe that the 55" model will compete with new Smart TVs from Samsung and LG that will have new processors built in while offering a combination of OLED display, as well as new Super HD TV technology from LG.

Last week, Piper Jaffray analyst and long-time Apple television set proponent Gene Munster offered his speculation on what Apple's plans might be. He suggested that Apple's anticipated television set couldl arrive in three screen sizes and no early as mid 2012, while others have seen Apple announcing it in late 2012 for an early 2013 sale date.

We have already found two new iPads and the next-generation Apple TV codenames tonight. Now we are are ready to something big. Here is, perhaps, the most important find of all: iPhone 5,1. That's right, the next version of the iPhone is has been found in iOS 5.1 internals.

This codename also tells us that iPhone 5 would be a major update. New 4,x model would represent minor changes. For example, the iPhone 3G went from the original iPhone 1,1 to 1,2 because there were no internal speed and performance enhancements, just 3G and a GPS.

The jump from 4,1 to 5,1 represents major changes, both internal and external. This means the iPhone 5/6 will have a brand-new processor, probably A6. Rumored additions for externals are a 4 inch display and a new aluminum casing. Since Apple just released the iPhone 4S in October 2011, we should not expect iPhone 5 anytime soon. New iPhone will come next October or maybe in the summer. With the 5,1 reference appearing this early, we like to think the latter.

Last month, we heard rumors that Apple had signed an agreement with Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) for production of the next-generation A6 and A7 chips destined for future iOS devices. Samsung manufacture the A4 and A5 chips for Apple, but Apple seems to try to shift to TSMC because of difficult relations and legal battle between Apple and Samsung.

The Korea Times now reports that Apple will indeed primarily be sticking with Samsung for A6 production.

"Apple has been in talks with Samsung over shipment of its A6 quad-core mobile processor (AP) chips to be used in the next iPhone. It appears that Apple clearly has concluded that Samsung remains a critical business partner," an executive from an Apple parts supplier based in Korea said on condition of anonymity.

He said that Samsung has been increasing the output of the Apple-designed A6 chips in its manufacturing plant in Austin, Texas.

As FinancialPost reports, J.P. Morgan’s analyst Mark Morkowitz suggests that Apple will release two models of iPhone in September. The first is the redesigned iPhone 4 -expected iPhone 5 – and the second is a cheap mass market handset with a tentative name “iPhone 4-plus” or “iPhone 4S”.

Samsung, one of the main Apple’s component suppliers, is likely to face a financial blow from Apple. It is rumored that Apple is actively looking for alternative A6 chip manufacturers. The designed in-house A6 processor is expected to debut in iPad 3 next year and afterwards find its way into iPhone 6.

The iPhone Dev-Team released RedSn0w 0.9.8b6 that supports tethered jailbreak for the most recent iOS 5 beta 6:

We've released redsn0w 0.9.8b6 to jailbreak iOS5 beta6 (point it directly at the beta6 IPSW).

Two important notes about this version:
(1) Please let your device boot normally to IOS5b6 and do a clean shutdown (slide to power off) before jailbreaking.

(2) Boot logos have intentionally been disabled for now, so you'll see a black screen on tethered boots (you can re-enable logos or verbose boot with command-line options if you really want them back).

Due increased sensitivity to abrupt filesystem shutdowns in IOS5b6, it's very important that you do a clean shutdown before running redsn0w.

Reuters reports that Taiwanese maker TSMC has started a test production run of A6 processors designed for future Apple handsets. TSCM is not yet confirmed as the manufacturer of Apple’s A6 processors, but it is said that decision is already “authorized”. The only reason for delaying the deal is the potential yield rate of the chip production.